Champagne Central

Rather too loud if you’re looking for somewhere to chat about some business or work but the seats overlooking the station concourse provide ample opportunity for watching folk going about there day.
Service was fine but we only had a coffee so can’t pass comment on the drinks list etc.

Beautiful looking building located above the busy station. The bar could get very busy but the cocktails are well worth the wait. A must see.

Only been in for drinks. Set within the revamped Central Hotel, it can be massively busy, especially when it is Christmas party season.
Been in before for a glass of champagne when it first opened and was good (had to wait for a seat though).
This time for a soft drink and prosecco — prosecco was £6 per glass but wasn’t that great to be honest. Bar was mobbed but getting served was easy enough. Glasses cleared regularly so service good.
So all in all, not bad. Good location for a pre-​dinner drink if you are around city centre.

We had a lovely few hours lounging in the comfy area just off the bar enjoying lots of tasty treats! They were very accommodating as we’d forgotten to warn them when booking that one of our party required gluten free options and my allergy to nuts. It meant a short wait while they sorted out alternatives with the chefs but they didn’t mind at all and of course, neither did we as we had lots of chatting to do anyway! :)
Lynsey and I enjoyed non-​alcoholic apple mojitos which weren’t on the menu — there were only 3 non-​alcoholic options and I didn’t like any of them so asked if they could make these, again they were very accomodating and even got me to check it before they made the other as the bar lady (Izabelle I think) hadn’t made them before. She did a great job and was also absolutely lovely.
When our food did arrive, Briony had her own special tier of gluten free rolls, gluten free scones and gluten free cake options. She was thrilled as gluten free options can often be disappointing but she enjoyed everything! Our sandwiches were cut into dainty fingers and we received one each of smoked salmon, egg mayo, roast beef & horseradish and cream cheese & cucumber. Our scones were warm, soft and delicious served with plenty of clotted cream (although we still ran out due to our mutual love of the thick stuff so they brought us some more)!
I received my own special plate of cakes to ensure they were nut free. Usually I end up disappointed again as despite me reassuring venues that I am fine with anything that says ‘traces of nuts’ and can eat many nuts, just not anything with peanuts, brazil nuts and walnuts in the actual recipe, I often end up missing out on tasty things I love like macarons or brownies with hazelnuts in and I end up being jealous of the other diners’ plates. I think this is the first time I’ve actually induced jealousy with my option as I had some great cakes including a particular favourite — black forest! They actually gave me two of those so I shared with Roz too.
It was a wonderful afternoon in the decadent surroundings of Grand Central with such great company. We received a lot of food for £14.95, including our choice of tea as well of course! I would definitely recommend it.

We were looking for somewhere to go for afternoon tea as Bex M is moving to Brighton (*sobs*), and I thought Champagne Central would be worth a try. I’ve visited here a couple of times for meetings/​Yelp events and so hadn’t had the chance to properly try it as a customer.
Afternoon tea is £14.95 pp which is a pretty amazing price compared to some other places in town which are over £20 pp. For this you get: chef’s top plate of cakes, homemade Glengoyne whisky macerated sultana & plain scones with clotted
cream & jam, chef’s selection of sandwiches — smoked salmon & cucumber, roast beef & horseradish mayonnaise, egg & cress, cream cheese and pickle. And tea, obviously.
We were seated in the lounge area of Champagne Central which you could easily miss if you didn’t venture far enough into the bar. It’s super cosy and comfortable, and has lovely couches so it’s nice to sit back and relax rather than be perched at the tall chairs in the bar. Initially service was a little patchy but the waitress explained she’d only just started working there, and she was really lovely and helpful. The other waitress who was helping us (Izabella) was great and super helpful with everything we threw at her!
I’d forgot to mention that I wanted a gluten free afternoon tea when we’d booked. I mentioned it when we were there, expecting they couldn’t do much about it but they went to the furthest ends of the earth to accommodate me and give us updates on how far away our afternoon tea would be. It was probably a ½ an hour wait which wasn’t too bad seeing as I should have warned them in advance! And a separate plate of peanut-​free cakes were delivered for Bex.
I’ve had a gluten free afternoon before elsewhere, and it was dire. Spongy bread and rock-​hard scones. So I wasn’t sure what to expect here. When the food arrived it looked really good — and I mean, properly good. I got mini rolls rather than sandwiches and these were some of the nicest, freshest rolls I’ve had (and that includes gluten rolls). The scone was amazing! So fresh, light and fluffy, I actually started to doubt it was gluten free, it was so nice. Served with clotted cream and pots of jam, we were in scone heaven.
The cakes were also a great selection and I really enjoyed those too — but for me the highlight was the scone. They even packaged up my second scone for me to take home.
All up, this was a really great afternoon tea which is a steal for the price and a really nice atmosphere to sit and relax with the girls for a couple of hours. I’d say it was moderately busy but never noisy as the seats are spread really far apart, so you can even forget you’re in a busy bar.

I met up with an old family friend last week for afternoon tea and decided to set up camp in the wonderfully glamorous Champagne Bar in Grand Central Hotel. The vibe here is one of old school vintage glamour, walking under the giant round crystal chandelier housed in its gold domed home you get the feeling that no expense has been spared to restore this hotel back to its former glory. We were seated in the lounge area which is stuffed full of chic velvet sofas and feature chairs (I do love a feature chair!), elegant black and gold wallpaper and low slung tables. It’s over the top but in a stylishly fabulous way.
This is an incredibly popular bar, I have been in here a few times now and even on a weekday afternoon you are lucky to get a table in the lounge if you haven’t reserved it.
The staff… oh god the staff! I want to be kind because in truth they did seem lovely girls, just a bit forgetful and unsure what the other was doing. First off we had to wait 15 minutes to place even a drinks order. However, the girl did go out of her way to make sure that I had skimmed milk for my latte. Next problem, we were asked 3 times if we wanted to order — despite already ordering, it then came to light that our food order hadn’t been placed with the kitchen. Once the order was in it did come fairly quickly tho. Then there was a wee bit of a mix up with the bill, nothing major just the waitress didn’t realise that despite asking for it, that we were actually waiting on it. Like I said the waitresses were lovely… just a little confused!
The afternoon tea was scrumptious when it arrived 3 huge plates stuffed with delicious sandwiches, made in-​house warm scones and tempting little cakes.
The sandwiches were fairly basic but lovely — egg mayonnaise, smoked salmon and cucumber, cheese and pickle and a roast beef and horseradish mayonnaise. My favourite was probably the cheese and pickle which was really flavoursome and my least favourite was the roast beef as it tasted quite plastic — the way some pre-​sliced roast beef can.
The scones were utterly delicious, there was a selection of plane and fruit which were served warm, with little individual pots of jam and raspberry flavoured cream which was so tasty. I couldn’t fault these at all.
The mini cakes were delicious little bite sized squares of various sponges. Stand out favourites were the chocolate (naturally) and the Victoria sponge. I would presume in a hotel of this size that these were made fresh in-​house, they certainly tasted like they were. Whoever made these needs a pay rise because they were so good.
All in all a lovely afternoon gossiping and catching up over some delicious cakes and coffee. definitely a decadent treat worth indulging in — just remember to book in advance.

This is a great wee champagne/​cocktail bar located within the Grand Central Hotel in the heart of the city. I’ve been here a few times and I absolutely love the feel of the place. It’s very upmarket and cosmopolitan and the people who frequent here adhere to that stereotype. It’s not big, but on weekends it feels absolutely tiny because it gets so crammed full.
The one thing that would put anyone off going here a lot would be the absolutely obscene prices. I think their cheapest cocktails are £9, ranging up to about £300 for some bottles of champagne. The bartenders are fantastic and know exactly what they’re doing, and this reflects in the wonderful cocktails, but at £9 upwards, this isn’t the sort of place you’ll find me often!

Not too bad but looks a bit shabby, considering.
The cocktail menu is quite good and the rest of the drinks menu is also quite impressive, though pricey from this perpetual-​students point of view. They also do an afternoon tea which is not as extensive as some I’ve seen but is definitely alright.
The real charm of this place is the view over Central Station which is really nice. I love watching people milling around to get their trains while I sip champagne, not a care in the world!
Worth a look, but decide for yourself if you want to stay!

Quick visit. It may have been just us but do you really have to pass reception go through several corridors, up the stairs and then at the end of a hallway there it is. A bit .erm. The place is nice enough, but the view over the station hall tires quickly enough. I wasn’t too impressed. They do serve Champagne by the glass, but a £12 kir is a little steep IMHO. Chairs in the windows are very comfertable and apart from the view it can actually be nice to spend an afternoon here. Seen better (thinking Dome in Edinburgh)